Sunday, 18 January 2009

The Games Industry in all its terrifying glory

Despite the boom of console sales rocketing in the past couple of years and the alleged invulnerability of the game industry in current economic climates, it is becoming apparent that this is not the case. People who have worked in the industry for even 10 years are finding themselves job hunting without success after whole studios have been closed.The slightest differences can tip the scales in interviews now, with it being as small as personal interests.

Whilst we feel sorry for the professionals, just think what it means for game related graduates this year and maybe next. Not only do we have to compete with the thousands of other graduates, we may have to compete with much more experienced and trusted professionals.Then there's outsourcing; from what I have found, it seems there are both advantages and disadvantages from choosing this option. While it may be cheaper, it also takes longer to communicate because of distance and language barriers. This is only from the companies point of view. From our p-o-v, however, doesn't that mean a lower rate of employment for us? Tell me if I'm wrong.

Outsourcing is also more probable in sequels because of the knowledge workers already have of the previous game and even in games from films because the style can be more easily established from the film itself instead of starting from scratch and taking a risk which is the last thing companies want to do at the moment.

Outsourcing will continue to grow in the future and so may the recession, so the only thing we can do is work damn hard!